What notes are in Cm?

Cm contains C · Eb · G. Name any set of notes with the chord identifier.

How do you build a minor chord?

Stack a minor third and then a major third above the root — the reverse of a major triad.

Why do minor chords sound sad?

The minor third sits further from the simple overtone ratios than the major third, so the chord reads as darker. The association with sadness is learned, but the acoustic difference is real.

What notes are in the C Minor chord?

The C Minor chord contains the notes C · Eb · G: the root C with the intervals 1P, 3m, 5P stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally C, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.

What intervals make up the C Minor chord?

Measured from C, the C Minor chord stacks the intervals 1P, 3m, 5P. The quality of the third and of the seventh, if there is one, is what gives the chord its character; the rest of the notes colour it. Every interval in the formula links to its own page, with its sound.

C Minor Chord (Cm): Notes, Piano & Guitar

Play it on your instrument

Loading the keyboard…

Voicings on the piano

Voicing	Notes	Play it on your instrument
Closed, root position	C3 · Eb3 · G3

Tap a key or a fret to hear it.

Anatomy

C Minor (Cm) contains the notes C · Eb · G, each with a role measured as an interval from the root.

Read on: how triads are built

Inversions

An inversion of C Minor puts a chord tone other than C in the bass; the name after the slash is that bass note.

Where it lives

The keys and the scales C Minor belongs to.

In which keys

C Minor is diatonic to 7 keys; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.

E minorviSubdominant
Ab majoriiiTonic
F minorvDominant
Eb majorviTonic
C minoriTonic
Bb majoriiSubdominant
G minorivSubdominant

Scales that contain it

C Minor fits inside these scales, each built on C.

C Minor PentatonicC · Eb · F · G · Bb
C Major BluesC · D · Eb · E · G · A
C Minor BluesC · Eb · F · Gb · G · Bb
C MinorC · D · Eb · F · G · Ab · Bb
C Melodic MinorC · D · Eb · F · G · A · B
C Harmonic MinorC · D · Eb · F · G · Ab · B
C DorianC · D · Eb · F · G · A · Bb
C PhrygianC · Db · Eb · F · G · Ab · Bb

Related chords

Chords that share most of their notes with C Minor: simpler and richer stacks of the same notes, and the substitutes a chart would accept.

Simpler

C5C · G

Richer

CmMaj7C · Eb · G · B
Cm7C · Eb · G · Bb
Cm6C · Eb · G · A
Cmadd9C · Eb · G · D
C7#9C · E · G · Bb · D#
Cm9C · Eb · G · Bb · D

Common substitutions

EbEb · G · Bb
Eb is the relative major of Cm.

Minor on every root

C#m Dbm Dm D#m Ebm Em Fm F#m Gm G#m Abm Am A#m Bbm Bm

Open it in a tool

Understanding the C Minor chord

Names and symbols

Cm is the chord symbol for C Minor; it is also written Cmin, C-.

How it is built

On C the minor triad is C · Eb · G, stacking the intervals 1P · 3m · 5P. It is a major triad with its third lowered by a semitone, and that single change is the whole difference.

How it is used

It is the tonic of its own minor key and the ii, iii and vi of the relative major. The vi chord in particular is what makes the I–V–vi–IV progression work: it is the moment a bright progression turns inward without leaving the key.

Learn this properly

Chapter 10: Chords: Triads and Sevenths

Common questions

What notes are in Cm?: Cm contains C · Eb · G. Name any set of notes with the chord identifier.
How do you build a minor chord?: Stack a minor third and then a major third above the root — the reverse of a major triad.
Why do minor chords sound sad?: The minor third sits further from the simple overtone ratios than the major third, so the chord reads as darker. The association with sadness is learned, but the acoustic difference is real.
What notes are in the C Minor chord?: The C Minor chord contains the notes C · Eb · G: the root C with the intervals 1P, 3m, 5P stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally C, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.
What intervals make up the C Minor chord?: Measured from C, the C Minor chord stacks the intervals 1P, 3m, 5P. The quality of the third and of the seventh, if there is one, is what gives the chord its character; the rest of the notes colour it. Every interval in the formula links to its own page, with its sound.